This article provides a brief introduction to saltwater aquariums. It will first provide a brief overview of saltwater aquarium along with a short history. Then we'll discuss the different categories of saltwater aquariums. After that we'll go into more detail about what you might find in a saltwater aquarium. A lively discussion of pros and cons for keeping a saltwater aquarium follows. Finally, we'll conclude this article with online references for you.
Overview of a Saltwater Aquarium
The evolution of the saltwater aquarium has been nothing short of spectacular in the past 20 years. What could previously only be enjoyed by hobbyists living by the ocean can now be successfully undertaken by hobbyists around the world!
History
The history of saltwater aquariums is much shorter than that of freshwater aquariums. Reasons for this include how much more complicated the sea environment is to encapsulate within a tank as well as limited access to fish and invertebrates.
Other than a few very dedicated scientists, saltwater aquarium keeping really didn't hit it big until the 1950s. Probably the advances made with different filtration systems is what enabled fish hobbyists to dream big and begin keeping saltwater aquariums.
But with the advent of information sharing via published books as well as through the Internet along with developed commercial transportation means (not just airlines as many fish stores also use ground shipping as well) have both brought the saltwater aquarium to the masses.
FO, FOWLR, and Reef
When talking about saltwater or marine aquariums, you'll inevitably come across discussions using the following acronyms, FO and FOWLR:
- FO stands for "Fish Only."
- FOWLR stands for "Fish Only With Live Rock."
The other choice you have with a marine aquarium (if you're not going to go with FO or FOWLR) is the Reef Tank.
With the first two categories, FO and FOWLR, the idea is that you're not going to have any invertebrates (animals without backbones - we're talking anemones, sponges, and both soft and hard corals). With the Reef Tank, your focus is on the invertebrates. Any fish you have will be a secondary focus.
The distinction between FO and FOWLR is on the "Live Rock" aspect. Live Rock refers to rocks from the ocean that have living bacteria and other micro and macro organisims on them which helps with biological filtration. The rock itself isn't living anymore, in fact, it's usually dead coral. It's important to remember that Reef Tanks will usually use LR as well.
What's in a Saltwater Aquarium?
You can find the following in a saltwater aquarium:
- fish - mostly marine tropical fish usually caught from exotic locations. Some of the more popular tropical saltwater fish include: clownfish, damselfish, angelfish, butterflyfish, tangs, bennies and globies. You'll also find puffer fish, porcupine fish, lionfish (also known as turkeyfish), jawfish, and mandarinfish. Although it's not that common, you'll also find more exotic fish being kept in tanks all the time. The black banded cat shark is a popular one that often times if bought as an egg. Seahorses are another fish that are difficult to keep in captivity.
- corals - both soft and hard corals
- other invertebrates - anemones, sea urchins, starfish, crustaceans (crabs and shrimp), tube worms, and mollusks (clams, snails, and octopuses). Occasionally, you'll find jellyfish in tanks as well but they require expert care.
- live rock
Pros
There are a number of reasons that keeping a saltwater aquarium makes sense:
- The Beauty of the Fish
- The Challenge
- The Interest helps protect fish in the wild
If you've every gone snorkeling or scuba diving near a reef, you were probably amazed with the different kinds of fish you saw and how colorful they were. Marine biologist, Justin Marshall, explains a predominant theory that the reason why reef fish are so colorful is to help scare away predators! There's no two ways about it. If you are in love with the neon, bright, and flamboyant colors of coral reef fish, the only way you're going to enjoy them at home is with a saltwater tank.
For many fish hobbyists who start out with freshwater tanks, the lure of facing the challenge of keeping saltwater fish is such a strong rhythm beating within them that at some point, they cannot ignore it any longer and succumb to being saltwater CRAZY.
Finally, another pro for keeping a saltwater aquarium is that the public interest helps protect fish in the wild. If so many people weren't involved with this hobby, then global impacts to saltwater fish in the wild wouldn't be as widely followed or controlled.
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